Dow Promise community grant

Dow Promise community grant is sponsored by Dow Corporate. This competitive grant program supports social, economic, and environmental projects that contribute to long-term success in the communities where Team Dow lives and works.

How to get grants from the Dow Chemical Company | Inside Philanthropy OVERVIEW: Dow and the Dow Company Foundation support STEM and skilled-trades education, community development, human services, disaster response and environmental sustainability, with much of their grantmaking concentrated in communities where the company has facilities and employees.

IP TAKE: : Dow is a locally oriented corporate funder with a more varied application landscape than its centralized grants page initially suggests. While much of its larger strategic giving is relationship- or employee-driven, Dow does accept unsolicited applications through site-based community grant programs in several operating communities.

For 2026, verified programs in Michigan, the Delaware Valley, West Virginia and Kentucky have offered three application cycles. Relationships with Dow employees still matter. The company’s Business Impact Fund accepts proposals originating with employees, its ALL IN ERG Fund connects employee resource groups with community partners, and FIRST team grants favor teams with a Dow employee mentor and/or a location near a Dow site.

Strong prospects tend to combine a clear local connection with Dow’s priorities in Thriving Communities, STEM & Skilled Trades, or Sustainability. PROFILE: The Dow Chemical Company Foundation is the philanthropic entity of the Dow Chemical Company, a subsidiary of Dow Inc. that is based in Midland, Michigan. The foundation was established in 1979.

Together with corporate giving initiatives, the foundation “ strive[s] to create positive social change through strategic investments that align with our social impact priorities. ” Its current social-impact priorities are Thriving Communities, STEM & Skilled Trades, and Sustainability . It runs two competitive grantmaking programs: the Dow Promise Community Grant and FIRST ® grants for STEM education.

Grantmaking is national in scope, with a focus on Michigan, Texas, Louisiana and Kentucky. Grantmaking is strongly tied to Dow’s operating footprint, but the portfolio also includes national and international strategic partnerships. Recent foundation grants range from small community awards to seven-figure institutional commitments.

Grants for STEM Education, Higher Education and Work Opportunity Dow’s STEM & Skilled Trades work aims to connect young people and students from under-resourced communities with education and careers in science, technology, engineering, manufacturing and the skilled trades.

Dow Last Mile Education Fund for Manufacturing & Skilled Trades : Administered by the Last Mile Education Fund, this program provides students with up to $5,000 to overcome financial barriers to completing eligible manufacturing and skilled-trades degree or certificate programs. Applicants must attend school or live within 50 miles of a Dow community and generally must have completed at least two semesters or half of their program.

Applications are open year-round and reviewed on a rolling basis. Funding may cover tuition, tools, certification costs, housing, transportation, childcare and other expenses that could prevent completion. FIRST team grants : Dow has partnered with FIRST since 2014 to support robotics and other hands-on STEM programs.

In 2025, Dow team grants supported more than 3,000 students and 185 teams across 10 countries. For the 2026 U.S. and Canada cycle, grants were available to FIRST Robotics Competition, FIRST Tech Challenge and FIRST LEGO League teams with a Dow employee mentor and/or a location near a Dow site or office. The 2026 U.S./Canada application period ran from May 26 through June 30.

HBCU, HSI and community-college partnerships: Dow says its expanded partnerships with five strategic Historically Black Colleges and Universities and three Hispanic-Serving Institutions have reached more than 5,000 students through more than 17 programs.

Through its broader Dow ACTs framework, the company reports investing more than $5 million since 2020 in HBCUs and community-college skilled-trades programs, including student research opportunities, scholarships and STEM programming. These appear to be strategic partnerships rather than an open grant program.

Teach For All: Dow continues to support Teach For All’s STEM teacher recruitment, placement and professional-development work in Argentina, Japan, Nigeria, Spain and the United States. In the 2024-2025 school year, Dow reports that this work supported 57 STEM fellows and reached more than 8,300 students. The Dow Company Foundation awarded Teach For All $400,000 in 2024.

This is a strategic partnership; no general application process for becoming a Dow-funded Teach For All partner was identified. Grants for Community Development and Human Services Dow’s Thriving Communities work supports basic needs, economic opportunity, inclusion, education and other locally identified needs, particularly in communities where its employees live and work.

Site-based Community Grants/DowGives: Dow currently operates open grant programs in selected U.S. communities. Verified 2026 programs in Michigan, the Delaware Valley, West Virginia and Kentucky accept applications through Dow’s online grant system. In Michigan, Delaware Valley and West Virginia, the 2026 review cycles have application deadlines in February, May and September.

The final 2026 deadline is September 15. Eligible applicants generally include 501(c)(3) nonprofits and qualifying schools or government entities serving Dow communities; faith-based organizations may qualify when projects benefit the broader community. Some site programs specify grants of up to $10,000 and favor projects with a strong community impact, collaboration, measurable results and opportunities for Dow employee engagement.

Restrictions vary by location, but current guidelines commonly exclude general operating expenses, fundraising events, individual scholarships, lobbying, political organizations, capital campaigns and requests from individuals. Prospective applicants should consult the page for the nearest Dow facility because application availability and local eligibility vary.

Dow Promise : This annual competitive program supports educational and economic challenges facing Black youth and adults in U.S. communities where Dow operates. Grants of up to $10,000 support social, economic and environmental initiatives intended to expand equitable opportunities. Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3) nonprofits, municipal and government agencies, and qualifying faith-based organizations.

Dow employees select awardees. United Way: United Way remains an important component of Dow’s community giving and employee-engagement strategy. More than 3,200 Dow employees in North America pledged $2.

8 million through the company’s 2025 workplace-giving campaign, supporting more than 525 organizations. The Dow Company Foundation also makes direct grants to United Ways; its 2024 filing includes $600,000 to United Way of Midland County and $200,000 to United Way of Brazoria County. Nonprofits generally access this money through local United Way processes rather than by applying to a separate Dow United Way program.

ALL IN ERG Fund: Launched in 2019, this fund connects Dow’s employee resource groups with community organizations working on inclusion-related needs. Dow reports 88 projects in 30 countries. No public application process was identified; prospective partners are more likely to enter through relationships with Dow employees or employee resource groups.

Michigan K-12 Youth Group Grants: In the Great Lakes Bay Region, Dow offers grants of up to $1,000 to K-12 youth groups that complete at least 50 collective hours of volunteer service and are affiliated with a nonprofit organization or school. The grants are administered locally through the Midland Area Community Foundation, Bay Area Community Foundation and Saginaw Community Foundation, subject to available funds.

Michigan sponsorships: Dow also accepts sponsorship requests from nonprofits for fundraising and community events in the Great Lakes Bay Region that align with its priorities. Applications are made through Dow’s online grants system and are distinct from charitable grants.

Grants for Disaster Preparedness and Humanitarian Aid Dow supports disaster preparedness, response and recovery through nonprofit partnerships, grants, employee volunteer deployments and other corporate resources. The company has a longstanding relationship with Team Rubicon; in 2025, Dow employees deployed with the organization to assist with recovery from an ice storm in Michigan, Hurricane Helene and flooding in Texas.

Dow also operates an Employee Relief Fund , administered by E4E Relief, which provides emergency financial assistance to Dow employees and their families following qualifying disasters and crises. Since its 2021 launch, the fund has distributed more than $1. 1 million to over 1,700 employees and family members in several countries.

This is an employee-assistance program and should not be confused with Dow’s external disaster grantmaking. Disaster-relief funding for outside nonprofits appears to be primarily partnership-driven rather than an open rapid-response grant program.

Grants for Environmental Conservation and Sustainability Dow’s Sustainability philanthropy supports circularity, decarbonization, water stewardship and healthy ecosystems, including work in communities that face disproportionate environmental risks and burdens.

Business Impact Fund : Launched in 2016, this competitive program brings together Dow employees, nonprofits, NGOs and customers to address social and environmental problems while also creating business value. Dow reports that the fund has supported 71 projects in 25 countries, representing about $15 million in investments. Recent projects address such issues as recycling, affordable housing, food waste and conservation.

Funding proposals originate with Dow employees worldwide , so an external nonprofit cannot simply submit an unsolicited application. A relationship with a Dow employee or business unit is the most realistic entry point. Conservation partnerships: Dow maintains external partnerships with organizations including Ducks Unlimited and The Nature Conservancy.

Its work with Ducks Unlimited has supported more than 2,000 acres of Gulf Coast freshwater wetlands, while its relationship with The Nature Conservancy integrates nature considerations into company decision-making and conservation work. These are strategic relationships rather than publicly advertised grant programs. Community cleanup and circularity: Dow also operates its #PullingOurWeight initiative.

In 2025, the program involved more than 10,000 volunteers in 140 cleanup, collection, education and waste-transformation events, removing more than 53 metric tons of waste. Recent tax filings also show environmental giving to local organizations, especially in Michigan, alongside much larger grants in education, community development and other fields. The Dow Company Foundation reported 221 grants totaling about $19.

6 million in 2024 . Its median grant was approximately $10,000 , with awards ranging from about $1,000 to $2. 4 million .

The foundation held approximately $250 million in assets at year-end. The portfolio combines many relatively small community grants with a smaller number of large strategic and institutional awards. Giving is especially concentrated in Michigan and other communities surrounding Dow facilities , but strategic programs and partnerships extend nationally and internationally.

Grant sizes and access differ considerably by program. Application process: Dow does not operate a single open application for all foundation funding. However, selected Dow operating communities currently accept unsolicited applications through local Community Grant/DowGives programs.

Other opportunities, including Dow Promise and FIRST, operate through separate competitive cycles, while the Business Impact Fund and ALL IN ERG Fund are employee-driven. Getting on Dow’s radar: Nonprofits near a Dow facility should begin with the relevant local Dow location page and current community-grant guidelines.

Beyond open site grants, relationships with Dow employees are unusually important because employee involvement is explicitly built into several giving programs. Local United Ways, community foundations, existing Dow nonprofit partners and employee volunteer networks can also provide useful points of connection. General inquiries may be made via a contact form on the corporation’s website.

The Dow Company Foundation’s phone number is listed as (989) 636-8780. Dow Corporate Global Citizenship Enable JavaScript to continue This site uses JavaScript to verify your account, display articles, and provide other features. Please enable JavaScript or allow scripts for Inside Philanthropy, then reload the page.

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